Young Brunette Girl Near The Old Iron Factory

Shadow factories
A shadow factory is a term given to dispersed manufacturing sites in times of war to reduce the risk of disruption due to enemy air-raids and often with the dual purpose of increasing manufacturing capacity.
Production of the Supermarine Spitfire at its parent company's base at Woolston, Southampton was vulnerable to enemy attack as a high profile target and was well within range of Luftwaffe bombers. Indeed on 26 September 1940 this facility was completely destroyed by an enemy bombing raid. Supermarine had already established a plant at Castle Bromwich, this action prompted them to further disperse Spitfire production around the country with many premises being requisitioned by the British Government.